GoogleGames
Latest
Google's Halloween game puts a ghoulish twist on 'Slither.io'
Head on over to Google.com today and you'll be able to play an interactive doodle game to mark Halloween. Great Ghoul Duel is a team multiplayer showdown set in a haunted house that sees two squads of neon ghosts munching "spirit flames". Each little light you eat gets added to your tail, with players snatching them from one another en route to depositing them in their respective zones for points. The team with the highest score at the end wins.
Google now has a 'Chief Game Designer' in Noah Falstein
Haven't heard of Noah Falstein? That may be the case, but you've probably heard of some of his work -- everything from arcade gem Sinistar to adventure game classic Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis. Well now he's working on another thing you've heard of: Google. According to Mr. Falstein's LinkedIn profile, spotted by TechCrunch, he recently became "Chief Game Designer" at the "Don't be evil" company -- but what could that mean? Nothing yet, as additional information isn't available, though we've reached out to both Falstein and Google. Our friends at TC are suggesting something more "serious games" focused, or perhaps something involving Niantic Labs' Ingress MMO, but it's all up in the air at this point. A cached version of Falstein's LinkedIn reveals his new gig as chief game designer "at Android Play Studio," which ... well, that's the first time we've heard that name as well. For now, know that Google's got a game industry vet leading up something involving games at the company. Update: Google confirmed to Engadget that Falstein joined the company, but won't say what he's up to just yet. We'll let you know more as soon as we do!
Google plans unified gaming hub for Play, cross-platform titles a possibility
In other non-spotlight stealing tech news, Google's set to chop off some of its gaming arms in favor of a sole download hub as early as next year. Plans for this streamlined service were announced by Punit Soni, group product manager for Google+, at this year's Game Developer's Conference. According to VentureBeat, the company's virtual storefronts, which encompass the likes of Chrome, Android and Google+, will all be tied into a single Google Play-hosted destination that should ease game development, potentially making titles accessible cross-platform. In addition to the creation of this one-stop shop, features such as Native Client, Hangouts and a simplified payment system will also reportedly be integrated into the unnamed site. No immediate changes are on deck for this service overhaul, so it'll be a bit before we can see how this "One Google" vision pans out.
Google+ code reveals intent to unleash Games and Questions to the social world
Having a difficult time getting your honeydew list checked off because you're trying to level up in Mafia Wars? You may want to just chuck the whole sheet of paper in the trash. Buried deep in Google Plus' source code are a few curious references to at least two new services that may very well be destined for the invite-only social networking suite. The first is Google Games, the tech giant's first venture into the world of social gaming. While this isn't a big stunner -- recent job postings insinuated that this feature would come around sooner or later -- it makes perfect sense for it to be included as part of the Google+ experience to help strengthen Mountain View's bid against the likes of Facebook. Also on the company's white board is Questions, a likely love child of Google's $50 million acquisition of Aardvark. When the source code offers up hints like "you might try rephrasing or tagging your question to make it easier for someone to answer," along with the utterance of sharing questions with others and commenting on answers, nothing could be more indicative of a social service. There still isn't a strong indication that we'll see these two features pop up anytime soon, but the hamster wheels are definitely turning right now, and we're piecing the clues together. At the rate things are going, these services may easily be ready before we all get invites. [Thanks, Ian]
Games at Google revealed in job posting, takes a stab at social gaming
Well, one of the few remaining sectors that Google has yet to conquer, gaming, will be Big G free no longer. The tech giant is looking for a product manager to man a new property called Games at Google. Obviously, with just a job posting to work with, details are scant, but we can tell you that the gaming platform will boast some social features -- an area where the Goog has struggled mightily. What don't we know? Just about anything else. Will it be a Game Center-like feature for Android phones? Or, perhaps, a web-gaming outlet for Chrome built with help from the folks at Zynga, who Google quietly partnered with back in the summer of oh-ten. Regardless, we're waiting with bated breath to find out when and where we'll be able to order hits in Mafia Wars next.
